Capping head



March 13,1945. JQNSSON 2,371,334

CAPPING. HEAD Filed Oct; 7, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 J'qsv} Emor Tcmsson ag/(Try.

Patented Mar. 13, 1945 UNITED STATES PATENT oF'Fics Application October 7, 1941; Serial No; 413,941 '5 In Sweden October 2,- 1940 3 Claims; ((31. 226-85) The present invention relates to a bottle cap'-' ping device, and particularly to a bottle capping device of the type in which a pressure piston displaceable in a capping head cooperates with a suitable capping tool such as a rubber ring adapt-- ed to press the skirt of a bottle cap placed on the mouth of a bottle tightly against the peripheral wall of the bottle neck. In devices. of this kind, the pressure piston is actuated by the movement of the capping head in a cappinghead carrier.

One object of the invention is to providea capping device of the type set forth in which the radial pressure exerted by the capping tool upon the bottle neck is rapidly increased to a certain value during the initial portion of the relative movement between the capping head audits carrier, whereas after this proper capping pressure has been reached, no further increase in radial pressure is effected regardless of the length of the subsequent relative movement between the capping head and its carrier;

Another object of the invention is to provide a capping device of the type mentioned in which a single spring controls the relative displacement between the capping head andyits carrier and also the relative displacement between'the pressure piston and the capping head.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a capping. device which permits capping of bottles, the heights of which differ within cer tain rather wide limits without any readjustment of the mechanism and without change in the length of the stroke carriedtout by the carrier of the capping head or the bottle support.

A still further object of the invention is to, provide a capping device, in which all parts, after each capping operation, are returned easil and smoothly to their starting positions sothat capping operations can be carriedout inrapid suc- 'cession.

These objects are accomplished by the-arrangemerit and combination of elements set forth in the following detailed description, defined in the appended claims and illustratively exemplified in the accompanying drawings in which Fig. 1 is a vertical section of a capping-device according to the invention capping operation.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view of a line 2-2ofFig.1,and

Fig. 3 is a vertical section similar to that of Fig. 1 showing the position of the various parts at the completion of a capping stroke.

In the drawings, the reference numeral I denotes a support element vertically reciprocablethrough a predetermined distance. A tubular capping head carrier 3 is rigidly mounted on the support I by means of a bracket 2. The capping at the beginning of a detail taken on able in the carrier 3, and a lower portion 6. The latter is provided with achannel 6a for the introduction of the bottle caps 28 and a channel 6b communicating with a sourcei'of suction and also, through a narrow'slot 60, with the channel 611. Each cap is moved'by the suction coming from the channel 6b through the channel 6a to its proper center position infthe capping head portion 6 and'is stopped in this position by a shoulder formed on the latter. portion 6 is screwed into* the upper portion 4 and is provided; on its underside, with a'tapering opening 32 adapted to rceivethe top of a bottle; flange formed in said portion 6 above the opening 32. A pressurepistont, slidable in an axial recess of the upper portion 4 of the capping head, bears with its lowerrim' against the ring I so that, upon downward displacement'of the piston 8 relative to the capping head portion 5, the rubber ring I isaxially compressed and caused to spread radially inward so as to press the skirt of a bottle cap 28 seated on top of a bottle 29 against the peripheralwall of the bottle neck. The pressure piston 8 surrounds a'spring' actuated counterpressure piston 9 which serves One end of'a lever H) is pivoted at H in the,

upper portion 4 of the capping head above the upper e'nd'of the pressure piston 8. 'A'convex portion Illa ofthe lever'lflrests upon and coop crates with the upper. surface of the piston 8.'

The other end of the lever I0 is pivoted at 12 to the lower end of a vertical rod l3. A compression spring M surrounds the rod 13 and is seated with its oppositeendsag-ainst two flanged sleeves l5, l6 slidable on the rod. lit." "The uppersleeve i5 presses against one end ofa'balance lever [9. The lower sleeve 46 rests onj'adjustable 'nuts I! by means of which the pressure of the spring may be reg'ulatedflThero'd 13' extends through i a cross piece 2! fixed to an'd'iorming an integral part of the capping head carrier 3. Nuts l8 on the upper end 'of the'rod I 3 limits the downward movement of the-latter relative to'the cross piece 2| and carrier 3. A protective casing 33'for the rod 13 and spring M 'iswdetachably suspended from the cross-piece 2 l. a

The upper end of the head portion 4 is provided with two ears 3'0between1which a slightly tapered finger 22 is pivotally mounted on a pivot pin 23. The tip of the fin'ger 22-fis disposed, in' the position of the device shown in Fig.1 ,-between two'rollers on pins- 24 and 25; the pin 24 being mounted in the carrier 3, while'the pin The lower head A rubber ring i is seated on an annular 25 is supported in a plunger 26 which is slidable in the carrier 3. Another roller carried by the plunger 26 on a pin 21 above the pin 25 supports the inner ,end .of .thebalance lever ,I 9, the latter being pivoted on vast'pin 20 provided in the cross piece 2|.

The capping device according to the invention operates as follows:

The support I lowers the capping head carrier 3 with the capping head 4/6, towards the bottle 29 on the table 3| so that the neck of the bottle enters the opening 32 in the lower head :portion 6, where it comes in contact with the :cap 28 previously brought into the proper position as described above. The cap 28 in turn seats against :the .counterpressure piston 9 which is thcnlstopped:byzthextoplof .the bottle. The head M6 and 'its carrier @continue their downward movement until ,the seating surface of ;the pressure :piston 8.strikes against the cap 28 and the bottle 'top land :both, the cap .and the bottle top, are surrounded by :the rubber :ring I. Now, the downward :displacementof .the head '4 /6 ,is ended and, upon durther downward movement of the support :I :and .carrier :3, the capping mechanism is operated. During thefirst part of the downward movement of the parrier 3 relative to the head 4., .thellever tfl rdoess-not-turn about its pivot 11,, :hut the spring aid is 'conrpressed .due to the dnwnward zmovement of :the :pivot pin 20 relative atodzhe zpivotzpin t2 :and :the nuts 18 arelifted offtthepross-piece 24,. isimultaneously, the tipof finger :22 penetrates "between *the rollers on pins '24 and .25, rthus reflecting 'a :small 'upward {displacement :ofztherplunger '26 :in the carrier ,3-to the position rshown in Fig. 3. This causes the balance lever k9 rt!) tum "'to't'he position shown iniF'ig. s3 and :hicreasesthe load :on spring 14 to such ;an extent zthatzit :becomes equal :to the .re-

"sistance of the rubber :ring :1 'against compression. During %the :next "part of the downward displacement of the carrier K3, the lever l9,-:pin'

20,,zrodll3, and spring M moverdown as a rigid unit :and causerthedever 4D to swing about its pivot-axisilil iromzthe :position .shown in Fig. :1 to "that shown in :Fig. :3. :sinceethe :convex portion Illa of theileverd-ll whichtrests ;on the pressurepiston 18 and, through the latter, on the top of rthe bottle, rcannot descend any iurther, the

downward movementaof the :pivot pin 12 causes the :lever to rto swing about its convex surface mazasa rfixed iulcrumand torimpart a slight rise to the capping :h'ead 4/16 in which :the pivot :pin 1:! is mounted The lifting ='of the head portion '5 relative to the :pressure piston 8 "causes an axial compression of the "rubberxring 1 between the pressure piston 23 and the flangevof the capping shead portion 16 on which-the'ring 1' is seated. Since .the practically incompressible rubber has no other escape than :radially "inward, the :materm] :of the ring 31 iscspread in this :direction,

and the axial 37116551118 :is thus transformed into radial -.;pr.essure ".which acts-toforce the skirt of the map.,-s28 against the periphery of the bottle -neck,;as shown Fig. 3. This movement continues until-therlever so :has reached'the position shownzinFig. 8,:in whichposition it is in contact with the lower wall of the recess in *the head 4 and prevented from any further tilting movement uretative "to "the head. Subsequent downward displacement "of-the carrier *3 causes 'a further ccompression of the 'spring '14 due to the downward movement rof the pin 20 relative to the, new .iixe'd, aplvot min H, but there :is practically no additional change in theposition of the balance lever l9, because the taper of finger 22 is very flat and just sufficient to insure a smooth withdrawal of the .finger 22 from between therollers124, 25 when .the carrier 3 is {returned to its starting position.

Thus, regardless of the height of the bottle and regardless of the fact that the total downwardstroke of the carrier has always the same length, theradial capping pressure exerted by the ring I will always reach the same magnitude when thecarrier has carried out a movement of a predetermined length after the cap has been seated on thebottle, but regardless of the extent of the subsequent downward movement of the carrier, which Zis greater in the case of a tall bottle and less ,in .the 'case of a small bottle, the radial ,pres-v sure can .1never'exceed this predetermined magnitude and the further increase in the spring load, which is kept comparatively small owing to the shape :of thefinger ,22, is taken up uniformly by the rim of the :bottlejmouth and the cap seated thereon-in asubstantially axial direction.

.I claim:

1.,A bottle capping device including a bottle support and a capping head carrier vertically reciprocable-relative to-each other through a predetermined distance, a capping head vertically slidable in :said :carrier, .-a capping tool seated in said capping head,-azpressureipiston vertically dis- .placeable in said capping head for actuating said capping tool, a lower ileverpivoted in said head for limited'rocking movement relative theretoand having a portion cooperating withsaid pressure piston, 'an upper :lever p voted in 'said carrier, means to transmit torsaid upper .leverzupon :downward displacement, of said carrier relative tosaid capping ahead fairockingmotion which is substantially the :same regardless .of the magnitude of said displacement, and spring vmeans provided between said :upper and lower levers eccentrically of the :axis of :said pressure piston'to actuate the latter and said capping'tool with a'predetermined spring pressure at a certain point of each .displacement-of said carrier relative tosaid'capping head. i 2. A bottle cappingrdevice, 'as claimed in 'clai 1 including a guide rod pivoted to the outer end of said lower lever, #a cross piece on said carrier above said'upper lever-,the upper end of said guide rod passing through and being :guided in said cross piece, an upper flanged :sleeve slidable on said guide rod 'andzresting with its upper surface againsttheouter end=of said upper lever, alower flanged sleeve slida'bleon said guide rod, .a-nut on said guide rod to permit vertical adjustment-of said lower sleeve thereon, said spring surrounding said guide 'rod and being supported with its opposite ends'on said 'twofianged sleeves, respectively. 1 3. A bottle capping device, as claimed in claim *lin which said means'to'transmitrocking motion to saidupper'lever comprisesa plunger vertically fslidable in said carrier and supporting 'the'lrmer end of said upper lever, 'a roller'mounted on-said plunger, and a slightly taperedfinger pivoted on the upper end of said capping head and adapted to penetrate between said'two rollerswhen said carrier is displaced downwardly withrespect to said 'capping headthereby imparting to :said upper lever a'rojcking movement which is substantiallythe-.sameiregardless of the amount of such relative displacement.

JOSEF EIN-A-R. JONSSON. 

